Jets vs. Browns Prediction: Fade Both Offenses With Backup Quarterbacks Playing

Two backup quarterbacks will duel in Week 2 of the NFL with Joe Flacco and the New York Jets traveling to face the Cleveland Browns and Jacoby Brissett. 

Flacco threw the ball 59 times in the Jets’ 24-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1, and he could be in line for another tough day against Myles Garrett, Jadeveon Clowney and a tough Cleveland front seven. 

The Browns snuck out of Week 1 with a win on a long game-winning field goal by Cade York, but Brissett showed some real poise leading the team down the field on the final drive of the game. 

Cleveland’s running game dominated against the Carolina Panthers, with Kareem Hunt and Nick Chubb combining for 187 yards on 33 carries. While the Jets slowed down the Ravens running game in Week 1, this is certainly a step up in class from Mike Davis and Kenyan Drake. 

Let’s jump into the latest odds from FanDuel for this game: 

Jets vs. Browns Odds, Spread and Total

Jets vs. Browns Odds, Spread and Total Movement in NFL Week 2

The Jets are still 6.5-point underdogs in this game, but after opening at 42, the total in this game has moved down to 40.5.

Jets vs. Browns Best Bet and Prediction

Earlier this week, BetSided’s Ben Heisler pointed out an interesting trend that favors the Jets in this matchup as 6.5-point dogs. 

That being said, I’m extremely concerned about New York’s ability to score points, as Flacco couldn’t consistently move the ball down the field against the Ravens even though the team ran for 4.9 yards per carry. 

Meanwhile, the Browns held Christian McCaffrey to just 33 yards on his 10 carries in Week 1. That could mean that the Jets will have to rely on Flacco to make plays, a scary proposition in a road game. 

Still, I don’t have enough faith in Brissett to lead the Browns to a win by a touchdown or more, especially since the Jets did play well against the run last week. 

Instead, I think this matchup lines up beautifully for the UNDER, as it’s very possible that New York fails to reach 10 points for the second straight week. Cleveland didn’t exactly light things up on offense in Week 1either, and I expect it to still try and chew clock by relying heavily on Chubb and Hunt. 

Find Peter Dewey’s full betting record here.